First Wave of GMC Conferences Launched By Chassity Neckers Bishop Mark Webb of the newly-formed Global Methodist Church recently wrote about being in an airport and seeing a book entitled The In-Between: Embracing the Tension Between Now and the Next Big Thing. He didn’t buy the book (so it’s not a recommendation), but he did take note of a thesis summary: “Moments of breakthrough are not where life’s greatest transformation happens; the stuff that God uses to shape us often lies in the in-between. It is the bus stops and layovers and DMV lines and moments of unintentional pause that force us ..read more

Looking Back, Moving Forward By K. Lynn Lewis Revival. Awakening. Outpouring. Manifestation of God’s presence. Gentleness. Glory. Peace. There are many descriptors spawned from the chapel service that began on February 8, 2023, in Hughes Auditorium at Asbury University in Wilmore, Kentucky. Thousands have shared their testimonies and opinions on media platforms far and wide. Although these recent events are new, others have similarly met the Almighty in the past. How did they respond? In the Bible. When God told Noah to “Build,” Noah did everything just as God commanded. Through his faithful a ..read more

The Changing Shape of Methodism By Thomas Lambrecht As many churches considered the option of disaffiliation, there has been a focus on the contrast between a traditional understanding of our Methodist doctrines and practices compared with how The United Methodist Church has evolved over the past couple of decades. Now that the disaffiliation process is moving forward with the current wave of annual conference votes, it is appropriate to look at how the structure of Methodism will be changing as a result. Disaffiliation Progress As of this week, 1,836 congregations have disaffiliated from the ..read more

Editor’s note: In honor of the passing of Bishop Sundo Kim (1930-2022) last fall, we are pleased to feature our 1991 cover story on him and the remarkable Kwanglim Methodist Church in Seoul, South Korea — one of the largest Methodist congregations in the world. At Good News, we considered Bishop Kim a treasured friend. During his lengthy and fruitful ministry at Kwanglim, he served on numerous boards both in Korea as well as around the global. He was the president of the World Methodist Council from 1997 to 2001 and was a member of the Asbury Theological Seminary Board of Trustees — eventually ..read more

By Jay Therrell On May 24, 1738, 285 years ago, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, went “very unwillingly” to a religious meeting on Aldersgate Street in London. He wrote about what happened next in his journal: “In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me ..read more

The Rollercoaster After Revival By Alexandra Presta My blood sugar is 47. Currently, I sit in the student center at Asbury University with tingling and numb lips. My fingers shake every time I pause in between typing on my laptop. I’ve already eaten dinner. I’ve chugged the bottle of Gatorade I keep in the side pocket of my backpack and forced myself to also eat half of the whoopie pie my friend gave me earlier. But it’s not going up. This is the eighth time in the past 24 hours my blood sugar has dropped below 70, which is when my symptoms of hypoglycemia typically begin. My blood sugar is su ..read more

By Rob Renfroe I have now been banned in two states. Ok, that’s a bit of an overstatement. Two annual conferences, each covering an individual state, have determined that I may not speak to their churches. Even though I am still a United Methodist elder. Even if I am invited by a United Methodist pastor to speak to his or her congregation. As a matter of fact, I was recently disinvited to speak at a church. A district superintendent threatened the church’s pastor that my coming would likely result in the conference making it more difficult, if not impossible, for that church to exit the denomi ..read more

Loneliness & Loving Our Neighbor By Jennie Lyons My hometown of Washington, D.C. was recently named the loneliest city in America. Another study found a growing number of Americans have few or no close friends at all. Most of us allow ourselves to get pulled ever deeper into the vortex of our phones, laptops, and television screens. We spend less time outside. Less time sleeping. And less time in intimate conversation. And we wonder why depression rates are sky-rocketing. Garage doors go up and garage doors go down. We don’t take much time to really know our neighbors, much less love them ..read more

By Thomas Lambrecht As of this week, over 3,000 U.S. churches have now disaffiliated from The United Methodist Church since 2019. This means the denomination has lost ten percent of its congregations. More annual conference votes are scheduled for the weeks ahead, and it is estimated that nearly 5,000 churches will have disaffiliated in the U.S. by the end of this year. Disaffiliation is only the first of two crucial decisions for a congregation’s future. The second decision is whether to affiliate with another denomination or remain independent. And if the decision is to join another denomina ..read more

Are All Divisions of the Devil? By Rob Renfroe I don’t mind people thinking differently than I do. I often learn from such people, and I regularly benefit from considering opinions different than my own. But I admit I am upset when influential leaders express views that seem shallow and vapid. Or when, to promote their agenda, they throw out emotionally laden half-truths that condemn their opponents. On May 7, 193 churches in the Alabama-West Florida Annual Conference were approved for disaffiliation. Bishop David Graves used that occasion to state, “I’d like to use Scripture to tell you to be ..read more